South Korea’s KT Sat Examining Blockchain, IoT, As Part Of Market Reevaluation

Engineers at the KT Sat Geumsan Satellite Centre in South Korea. Photograph courtesy of KT Sat.

KT Sat, South Korea’s only commercial satellite communications company, has announced that it has created a working group to examine the integration of emerging technologies into its commercial offerings, to include blockchain and the Internet of Things (IoT).

This new initiative, named KT SAT Eco Alliance, was announced on 22 November 2018 at the company’s annual partners’ day event. It’s goal is to bring together companies working in tech fields including the Internet of Things (IoT), cybersecurity, and 5G, as well as distributed ledger technologies (DLT) such as blockchain.

KT SAT is planning to carry out a number of events devoted to three major information and communications technology (ICT) fields, such as password security, blockchain, and maritime satellite communication platforms. The company reportedly will conduct multiple workshops, seminars, and debates related to the industries.

“The KT SAT Eco Alliance is an attempt to meet the requirements of a local and global leader in the satellite market,” said KT Sat CEO Han Won-sik. He also noted that he believes the industry “needs to continue discovering new services through new ICT convergence.”

Examples of this kind of convergence include global technology company IBM partnering in November 2018 with major Spanish telecommunications firm Telefónica to introduce a tool for managing international mobile phone call traffic.

In October 2018, development group The Viettel Enterprise Solutions Corporation, owned by Vietnam’s largest telecommunications operator Viettel Group, announced plans to become the country’s leading blockchain technology provider within five years.